Abstract: This paper explores the strategy formulation and the concepts related to decision making regarding acquisition formation in the information technology industry. Acquisitions, as part of the technical collaboration between firms in the information technology industry, have been intensive since 1990. The complexity of the related issues, critical success factors, conditions, triggers, motivations, causes, effects and their interlinked relationships, have not been fully covered in the literature of strategic management. In this paper, they are explored with a holistic approach to the study of strategic management, using a cause and effect mapping technique, known as cognitive mapping. The application of this research tool and the results help us to understand the importance of each concept (causes and consequences) used, the interrelationships between them, and the complexity of the decision making process. The paper is a contribution to the field of strategic management and to the cognitive approach in the management science.